


Are You Happy Now?

by Mirror_Face



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Character Study, F/M, Gen, Hallucinations, One Shot, Relationship Study
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-05
Updated: 2019-12-05
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:47:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21679240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mirror_Face/pseuds/Mirror_Face
Summary: Are you happy now, Kaede?I’m more confident! I’m better!I’m saving everyone!Are you proud of me, Kaede?I’m trying!I’m trying…(Shuichi keeps seeing Kaede where she shouldn’t be)
Relationships: Akamatsu Kaede & Saihara Shuichi, Harukawa Maki & Momota Kaito & Saihara Shuichi, Slight Saihara Shuichi/Akamatsu Kaede
Comments: 1
Kudos: 29





	Are You Happy Now?

**Author's Note:**

> I'm getting back into my more... abstract writing while the next chapter of Black and White Checkers is being worked on.

Kaede was everywhere. In heart, in spirit, in idea. Everywhere.

Some might think that as a good thing. “She made a difference, a huge impact! She saved everyone!” (even though she never did).

To Shuichi, her constant presence was a curse, a dreaded haunting that he could never get rid of. A seed in his mind that says,

“Do better, Shuichi! I died for you, didn’t I!”

And it gave him headaches and heartaches and made him want to sleep forever or never hear the name ‘Kaede’ ever again. But his mind, his thoughts, were forever chained to that girl- hanging from a metal chain. Her blood stained onto his mind,

her words stabbed into his heart.

No, Kaede was no mere person, she was a ghost. Forever haunting, forever there. Always pushing him into the pile of rabid dogs (that he called the world) too strongly and without warning.

  
  


_ ‘Bark! Bark!” Cries the world, _

_ “Drip. Drip” Spills down his blood. _

_ Does the ghost care? _

_ Does Kaede care? _

  
  


Did she ever love and admire him as he did her?

Honestly, he doubted it. What was there to admire about him? Poor Shuichi, right? 

  
  


_ The dog’s barking got louder and louder. _

_ And the dirt underneath him turned to mud (wetted by his tears). But at the edge, Kaede turned translucent and fell into the world (that had torn her apart, piece by piece). Even though Kaede didn’t push anymore, Shuichi slipped in as well. _

_ He could see the dogs’ jaws open wide, drool dripping down their lips. And he closed his eyes, awaiting the same fate that Kaede had met… _

Someone grasps his arm, “Hey, you okay bro?”

And Shuichi is snapped out of his trance- the ghost was never there to begin with.

“Y-yeah, I’m fine.”

“Sorry we took so long.” Kaito says, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

“This idiot took forever getting out of his room.” Maki says, walking up to both of them.

  
  


_ And two people (the astronaut and the assassin) grasped his hand, pulling him back up.  _

“Don’t worry, it’s fine. I don’t mind waiting.”

“See Maki Roll, Shuichi says that it’s fine.”

“Shut up…”

_ They had saved him (and when they fall, Shuichi will save them as well). _

* * *

“Are you happy” She asks.

“For the time being, yes.” He answers, curt. Not knowing what to think.

“Did I help?” Her eyes wide and wanting. She  _ wants _ to help, he realizes. She craves to help.

He still doesn’t know what to think.

“Maybe.” He shrugs his shoulders, not really knowing the answer.

And she smiles, bright and happy. “I hope I did.”

And he knows it’s sincere (both the smile and the words).

“I love you.” He blurts out- though he doesn’t know if that’s true anymore.

“Me too.” Her expression is unreadable- he doesn’t know if this is sincere.

“Thank you, Shuichi.”

And before he can ask ‘for what?’ she was gone- Kaede Akamatsu disappearing like the ghost she always was.

And a feeling blooms inside his heart- warm but melancholic. At the time he doesn’t place it, but later he realizes that it’s peace.


End file.
